On January 27, a three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit issued a significant opinion holding that the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (SCRA) does not prohibit the enforcement of arbitration agreements in credit card contracts under the Federal Arbitration Act (FAA).
To keep you informed of recent activities, below are several of the most significant federal and state events that have influenced the Consumer Financial Services industry over the past week.
Yesterday, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit issued a significant opinion vacating the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) Combating Auto Retail Scams Trade Regulation Rule (CARS Rule). The decision came in response to a petition filed by the National Automobile Dealers Association (NADA) and the Texas Automobile Dealers Association (TADA), challenging the procedural validity of the rule. The petitioners argued that the FTC violated its own regulations by failing to issue an advance notice of proposed rulemaking (ANPRM) before promulgating the CARS Rule. They also contended that the FTC’s cost-benefit analysis was arbitrary and capricious.
In this special year-in-review episode of Moving the Metal: The Auto Finance Podcast, hosts Brooke Conkle and Chris Capurso from Troutman Pepper Locke’s Consumer Financial Services Practice Group delve into the significant events and regulatory changes that shaped the auto finance industry in 2024. From the Federal Trade Commission’s CARS Rule and its legal challenges to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s data collection initiatives and supervisory highlights, this episode provides a comprehensive overview of the past year. Tune in to gain insights into the trends and regulatory shifts that will influence the auto finance landscape in 2025.
On January 22, New York Attorney General Letitia James announced a significant settlement with Yellowstone Capital of New Jersey and its affiliated companies over allegations of illegal high-interest loans disguised as merchant cash advance (MCA) transactions.
In this episode of The Consumer Finance Podcast, host Chris Willis and Michael Lacy, Consumer Financial Services Practice Group leader, introduce Troutman Pepper Locke’s annual Year in Review and Look Ahead publication. The publication covers 17 critical areas, including the Fair Credit Reporting Act, the Telephone Consumer Protection Act, and FinTech. This concise and accessible report offers valuable insights for clients, practitioners, and regulators. Tune in to stay informed and ahead of the curve.
In a previous post, we discussed the oral arguments held on December 18, 2024, by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit in the case of Insurance Marketing Coalition Limited (IMC) v. Federal Communications Commission (FCC). The case challenged the FCC’s December 2023 order under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA), which aimed to reduce unwanted robocalls and texts by closing the “lead generator loophole” and requiring “one-to-one consent” for telemarketing communications. The new rule was set to take effect on January 27, 2025. However, during oral arguments, the Eleventh Circuit judges expressed skepticism about the FCC’s justification for its new rule.
This week, President Trump designated National Credit Union Administration (NCUA) Vice Chairman Kyle Hauptman as the thirteenth Chairman of the NCUA Board. Hauptman succeeds Todd Harper as NCUA Chairman. In the press release announcing his appointment, Chairman Hauptman said, “I am deeply honored that President Trump has asked me to serve as Chairman of NCUA. I look forward to leading the agency’s dedicated professionals and working with my Board colleagues to create a regulatory structure that promotes growth, opportunity, and innovation within the credit union system.”
As discussed here, in February 2023, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB or Bureau) launched the auto finance data pilot and issued nine market monitoring orders to three banks, three finance companies, and three captive lenders. This initiative aimed to gather comprehensive data on auto lending portfolios. Yesterday, the CFPB issued a Repossession in Auto Finance report using the dataset to show that repossession assignments increased for certain consumers post-2020, but many consumers avoided repossession in parts of 2021 and 2022. The data also indicates that repossession forwarders were increasingly involved in repossession activity, potentially resulting in increased repossession costs passed on to consumers.
On January 15, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB or Bureau) issued a Compliance Aid to clarify the requirements under the Electronic Fund Transfer Act (EFTA) and Regulation E. Electronic Fund Transfers (EFTs) are defined as “any transfer of funds that is initiated through an electronic terminal, telephone, computer, or magnetic tape for the purpose of ordering, instructing, or authorizing a financial institution to debit or credit a consumer’s account.” The Compliance Aid, presented in a Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) format, addresses various aspects of EFTs, including coverage, financial institutions’ obligations, and error resolution processes.